How to Draw a Mermaid Step by Step: A Kid's Tutorial

Learn How to Draw a Mermaid Step by Step With the Help of This Tutorial!

"How do you draw a mermaid?" "Will you draw a mermaid for me?" These are probably the most common questions I get from the three to five-year-old girls in my nursery school class! Ever since I began working at my school three years ago, I have become the resident "artistic teacher", drawing princesses, ballerinas, and mermaids for the girls, and cars, heroes, and scenes from outer space for the boys.

In this tutorial, you will learn how to draw the mermaid I draw for my girls on a daily basis. This mermaid is very simple to create - so simple that even your children should be able to copy her without much issue! If you do end up drawing this mermaid, please send me a copy of your drawing so I can post it on this page for the world to see!

Do you prefer princesses, ballerinas or mermaids?

1. The Head

Whenever I start drawing a mermaid, I work from the head downwards. Start by drawing a three-quarter oval with a space left up top for the hair.

Then, start filling in the facial features. Draw two small dark oval eyes surrounded by half moon eyelids with two long eyelashes sprouting out from them, a small pointy nose, and a smiling mouth. I like to include smile lines on other side to give her an extra happy expression!

Finish off by drawing a half moon on the right to represent the ear.

2. The Hair

The hair of the mermaid is one of the easiest things to draw. All you have to do is draw a number of wavy lines emerging out of the top left-hand side of her head, at the point where the oval that represents her head ends. Try to make the hair as long and wavy as possible to give the impression that she is underwater.

You can also add decorations to her hair, such as starfish (as I have done here), flowers or shells.

3. The Upper Body

This is the part where we draw the upper body, including the neck, shoulders, shell bra, and stomach. Start by drawing two lines that come down from the ear and the chin. These lines will represent the neck. Continue on with the shoulders, having them arrive just beyond her face.

On either shoulder, draw two straight lines downward to create the bra straps of her shell bra. Under each strap, draw a shell shape indented with three lines.

From the outer edge of each shell, draw a slightly diagonal line downwards to form the stomach. In the middle, draw a dot for the bellybutton.

4. The Arms

The arms can be the most difficult part of the body to draw accurately. Generally, I try to make them as long as the length between her hairline and the small strap that links the two shells on her bra together. It is also important to make sure that the wrists are thinner than the upper arms. Remember, it is more of a trial-and-error process than anything else!

If you are unconfident in drawing hands, you can do what I did and simply draw "glove hands." These hands are easier to draw for children, and faster to draw for seasoned artists.

5. The Tail

Now we reach the fun part—how to draw a mermaid tail!

Start by drawing a thick heart-shaped ring around the waist. Draw a number of lines along the ring to give the impression of scales.

Then, draw two slightly curved lines that come directly down from either side of the ring around her waist. The two lines should almost meet at a point and should be as long as the mermaid's upper body. The resulting shape should be somewhat like a carrot or an almond.

Next, draw one line that shoots up from the end point of the left-hand line that makes up her tail, and another that shoots out from a point 1/4 of the way up the right-hand side of her tail. Have these two lines almost meet. The end of these two lines is where the fin begins.

Create the fin by drawing a wavy line up towards the right hand, and back down again. Repeat the process once again to create a second fin. The resulting image should almost resemble the claw of a crab. Try to make the lines as wavy as possible to give the impression of movement.

Finish off by drawing a number of small sideways half moons along the tail. This will make the tail look scaly, just like a fishes skin!

At this point, your mermaid should be complete! If you are feeling creative, you can always add other adornments to your mermaid, from a pearl necklace to a crown to dangly bracelets. The sky (or ocean?) is the limit!

6. The Final Product

A large version of the finished mermaid drawing for you to download and colour!